Where do you live on the net? The importance of a good address.

Remember when a common expression was, "He (or she) lives on the wrong side of the tracks"? That was back when we all had only one address-where we lived. Business owners realize they have a home addresss, where they live, as well as a business address, where they do business. But there's another very important address as well-your online address or where you live on the Internet. This is just as important as your physical addresses.

Here's an example: you've probably heard of "hotmail" or "Yahoomail" just two of the many places on the internet where you can get a free email address just for signing on. Nothing wrong with these but they're kind of like discount hotels-just sign in, not too many questions asked, if you know what I mean.

These places have their uses, they're good to use as secondary email addresses if you don't want to give your real email addresses out-you know, to avoid spam and other unsavoury email.

But why would you use one of these addresses for business purposes? Especially when you already own a domain? Are you hiding something? Is there something about your business you don't want people to know?

So many times, we see a small business with an email address that leads to hotmail and the like, or are the free ones that come with your Internet connection provider so the hosts name is involved e.g. "yourname@hostname.whatever."

This makes you look like an amateur or a business that's not serious. Wouldn't you rather have an address like: yourname@yourbusiness.com? We thought so! Well it's so easy-and it will probably cost you under $10.

Here's what to do: go to a large hosting service online, (we recommend 1and1) and register a domain. That's all. If you register a domain, using their search tool to find one that's available, say "yourbusinessname.whatever", you can then set up your email address to be, you guessed it, yourname@yourbusiness.whatever.

And what's more, you don't have to change your current email addresss at hotmail or wherever, you can set it up so your new professional sounding, business-like email address "forwards" to your current email address. Sound simple? It is and what's more, you've just moved from that trailer down by the river to a very nice part of the internet-your own domain. Congratulations!

Oh, and one more thing, be sure to set your email so that the "replyto" address is your new domain not that free one you're still using (if you really must).